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  • what happens when you cross a reading  obsessed owner with the renovation of  a traditional Japanese townhouse?

  • let's find out  on today's episode of WAORYU! Only in Japan

  • hey guys welcome to another video

  • so i'm  excited whenever i get a tour a traditional japanese home in kyoto

  • known as machiya

  • and  that's what we're doing today

  • with lovely Yee

  • and she can point out something very  specifically cool about these that we're exploring

  • so the owner of these properties loves Murakami Haruki

  • which is a famous Japanese author

  • and while we're doing a tour you will see the  connection between the properties and that author

  • Murakami Haruki

  • to give a little background on Haruki Murakami-san  he was born january 12, 1949

  • had his books translated into 50 languages

  • sold millions of  copies

  • and writes with a kind of surrealistic style

  • the first time i heard about him was in  high school

  • when a friend had told me he really enjoyed reading "Hard-boiled Wonderland"

  • and "the  End of the world"

  • it's so interesting to see that in the renovation of a home you could have the  crossroads with an author

  • welcome to the first room of the house guys

  • this is the meeting room

  • now some interesting details with naming

  • there's a compound of three houses here

  • and they're called  1891

  • and that refers back to when they were first registered

  • they were built before this

  • but first  registered in the Meiji restoration

  • so that's the collective name but they actually have individual  names as well

  • yes so the house we're in right now is called SANAGI,

  • and there are two properties at  the back

  • one is called two moons

  • another is called AOMAME.

  • if you notice these are three elements  from the book "1q84" which is written by Murakami Haruki

  • let's move on from the meeting room

  • so cost of the  building

  • The compound is going for 288 million yen which converts to roughly 2.6 million us dollars

  • so if you got that under your mattress come get this place

  • it's amazing

  • in through this way is  the dining room

  • and it has some really really nice features in here

  • so the first thing that  you would notice making it unique as to a western experience is the tatami floor

  • which gives offreally really unique fragrance

  • which i quite like

  • we have an antique cabinet ,we have some art  on the walls

  • and a little mini kitchen in the corner

  • now for me, possibly my favorite room in  a house like this

  • behind the sliding shoji doors

  • is a reading room

  • and it has some  really really cool features in here

  • one of the details that YEE shared with me  is that this owner really really likes art  

  • and he particularly likes art from Denmark

  • so  you can come into the reading room enjoy a book

  • be surrounded by art from Denmark

  • and also enjoy a pleasant view of the adjacent garden

  • that is with this huge  rectangular window next to us

  • easily viewable

  • so this is bathroom

  • where you have the bath

  • you can enjoy the peak from the garden

  • and what i like a lot is this rain shower

  • it's kind of rare  in MACHIYA

  • and that's because the owner loves it

  • the cocoon room

  • that is where we're going to  take you to next

  • and avoid bumping my head so

  • we have retained the original structure here

  • this  is a KYO-MACHIYA that not much has been altered to make overly modern

  • but this room  is a complete departure from that

  • and also where we're seeing that illusion  again to the author that we mentioned

  • so this cocoon bedroom which features the  beautiful wallpaper

  • also has the characteristic of curved surfaces all over the place

  • mimicking  a cocoon

  • you come in here it's cozy. It feels nice

  • that is not traditional in any  way whatsoever

  • that is where, while retaining the original structure of the building

  • the designers have come in and really tried to make it its own unique space

  • and  one that i would feel really cozy sleeping in

  • much like if you had gone to a bath house in  japan

  • in the second floor bathroom, if you sit down there are water jets which provide  you with a back massage

  • how cool is that?

  • once again we find ourselves sitting inwonderful comfy reading chair

  • The owner really does love to read, thus the connection with the book and so on, so you can chill here next to the  cocoon bed

  • and enjoy a nice book while you're  reading

  • and then over in the other direction there is some of this art from Denmark

  • a cool  suspension and the the colors are really neat

  • i like the fact that it actually like changes where you two sit here

  • It's kind of slowly moving around

  • but definitely a peaceful room whether you're  wrapped up in the cocoon or enjoying a book

  • this is the master bedroom

  • we have two single baths comfortably sitting here

  • and that's another reading chair

  • and you can see beautiful garden from the window

  • and here is what i like the most

  • the wall

  • don't make a mistake this is not sculpture

  • these pieces are actually from a roof

  • which is repurposed into the art feature

  • stunning property today

  • i will never get  tired of seeing the inside of these

  • they're always so varied

  • and interesting and unique

  • but  before we sign off

  • there's an interesting fact which you may not actually know about  Machiya

  • Machiya can no longer be built again

  • if they're torn down they're torn down forever

  • therefore if you stay in one or purchase one

  • you actually directly contribute to retaining this  beautiful Japanese culture

  • and it's actually something i would like to do one day

  • if i could  purchase and renovate one that would be a dream come true

  • i wonder after you've watched, would  you live in a MACHIYA?

  • or would you rent one?

  • why don't you let us know in the comments down below

  • thanks again for watching really appreciate you guys

  • that is going to be all for now

  • take care  out there and we'll catch you in the next video

  • you

what happens when you cross a reading  obsessed owner with the renovation of  a traditional Japanese townhouse?

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